Happy Easter!

I woke up on Easter morning feeling quite refreshed and invigorated from the relaxation of the day before…but we are completely out of food in the fridge and I am starving hungry!  We are lucky in that there are some great cafes in the shopping centre up the hill but as we approach the mall we find that most entrances are shut and the entire place is dead.  This doesn’t happen often in Australia..but Christmas and Easter are still sacred even in the retail sector.  We finally make our way to the main square via a laneway and find the cafes are buzzing.   We settle in for a morning of reading the newspaper and more indulgence.  I order a breakfast that is listed under the healthy gourmet section…but I wonder if poached eggs, fried mushroom, spinach, crumbed potato, avocado, Turkish bread dripping with butter and the sausages I switched for bacon would rate highly with my doctor on my next cholesterol check up..:)!  Diets are good for times between holidays but today I will continue to splurge.  I had woken up craving exactly the brekkie I am happy…and I am in bliss.

We spend the time catching up on the recent news and doing a bit of writing.  I am writing a piece on the Middle East for the Island newspaper in Sri Lanka where I have now become a regular!  The story rekindles memories of that wonderful year on the road in 2010…and I realise it is time to start planning for my next trip..

Finally after exhausting all drinks on the menu from hot cafe lattés to fresh orange juice we go home.  Later on that afternoon our new neighbours Clair and Brad call to invite us over for Easter drinks.  They have moved in to the house vacated by our friends Emma and Harvey and we are already becoming good friends.  Brad and Clair met while skating and share a love for this sport.  Brad is also in to 4 wheel driving and Clair has done her share of backpacking so we have lots of shared interests in common!  We have been to each others houses for dinner, exchanged recipes and have plans for more walks and get togethers.  They have a steady stream of visitors from Brad’s mother, to more neighbours as well as their skating coach who hails from Canada and her daughter.  Today is not as warm as the two previous days and the there is a threat of a thunderstorm or at least a good rainstorm in the air.  For now, the rain holds off and we sip our drinks, eat chips and exchange more stories and laughs. 

I love our neighbourhood community.  It seems to draw people who are laid back, love the bush and are community minded.  It is lovely to be able to pop over for a cup of tea and to know there is someone next door in the event of an emergency…or even if in need of a cup of milk!  Brad, Clair and her two kids have made Easter eggs.  We tuck into the chocolate and head home before a fabulous thunderstorm breaks the silence of the valley!  We had nothing planned for this break and it has turned out to be one of the best I’ve had!

The resurrection gives my life meaning and direction and the opportunity to start over no matter what my circumstances.  ~Robert Flatt